Make Summer Count
by Faeriecat12
Summary: Set after the wedding was cancelled but Belly and Jere are still together but Jere is still mad at Conrad. So what happens when Conrad appears at the beach house. Everything is not what it seems. My first fanfic so you will have to excuse me if doesn't make sense at first but I am hoping it will in the end.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

_Belly POV_

It has been a year since the wedding and since Conrad announced that he still loved me. Since then Jeremiah and I have got back together, once we got over the awkwardness that came with the decision not to get married a year ago. We both realised that getting married so young was just plain insane and are now taking things mush slower in our relationship.

In a couple of days we are going to the beach house for the summer break from college. School ended yesterday so Jeremiah and I are both packing to go see our parents for a few days before going to the beach house. After the all the arguments that came with the wedding I was worried my mum and I wouldn't be as close as we once were again, but as it turned out we still get along quite well as we have but that incident behind us.

Just as I was packing away the last of my clothes there was a knock at the door. I opened the door the reveal Jeremiah with a wide grin on his face. "Hey Belly are you nearly packed yet?" Jeremiah asked gently.

"Nearly. I just got a couple of clothes left then my laptop and textbooks to pack." I replied walking back to my bed where my suitcase sat.

"Can you believe it?" Jeremiah said while slowly slinking his arms round my waist and resting his chin on my shoulder. "Just three more days and we will be back at the beach house. Just you and me together. I only wish we could go there now instead of going to see our parents."

"I know the feeling" I gently purr into his ear which makes him shiver, "but we see each other almost every day of the year while we rarely see our parents at all. A few days of being a part from each other won't hurt."

"I know but I don't like it." He replied trailing kisses up her neck, "so do you need any help packing?"

"No, but speaking of which I should probably get back to that. My dad will be here shortly to pick me up."

"So do you want me to stay or should I leave you alone to pack?"

"I would prefer to be left alone because with here I will never get anything done."

"OK the I will go finish packing then" Jeremiah said as he started backing towards the door. As he was just about to close the door as he left he turned around and smiled sweetly before saying "you know I will be thinking about you every moment until I see you again."

"get out you idiot!" I replied playfully, "packing waits for no man."

A quirky grin crossed his face before he turned and closed the door.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

_Belly POV_

An hour after Jeremiah left my dad came and picked me up before dropping me off at my mum's house. It was only when I saw my parents that I realised how much I missed them. When I hugged my mum it felt like all wanting of the past year came crashing into me all at once. Once the all the hugs and teary eyes were gone and I finished unpacking, my mum and I spent the next couple of days catching up on what went on in each other's lives. She told me about the new promotion she got last month while I told her about college and how my and Jeremiah's relationship was going. Mum even had some news from Steven. Apparently, he had gotten an internship at a law firm near his college and would be spending the summer there.

Monday morning (4 days after school broke up), just before heading to Cousins, I said goodbye to my mum and she said she would come up to visit sometime near the end of summer. The drive to Cousins was as invigorating as ever. Warm rays of the sun shining on my face, the cool, salty ocean breeze blowing through my hair and caressing my face as it blew through the open window. It felt like I was back at the place where I belong as I drove, past all the places me and the boys have been to since we were kids, towards the beach house. At the sight of the soft white sand and the calm blue sea -twinkling as the sun shone it- I felt an overwhelming sense of joy at seeing the place I have spent nearly every summer of my life.

Just as I was about to pull into the driveway of the beach house I noticed a car there. My thought was that Jeremiah had gotten there early and that he was probably waiting inside for me. I felt my heart skip a beat at the thought. However, when I looked again I realised it wasn't Jeremiah's car that was in the drive way.

Being so focused on the car in the drive way meant that I didn't notice the figure sitting on porch. I almost didn't recognise him in his loose fitting jeans and hoodie with a baseball on his head covering his face. But when he looked up, at the sound of my car parking in the driveway, I saw his bright blue eyes and I recognised him immediately.

Conrad.

This couldn't be good.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

_Belly POV_

As I got out of my car a surge of fear coursed through my entire body. Strange mixtures of emotions tumbled through my head- joy, grief, happiness, sadness as well as the initial fear- but mostly it was anger. This was the boy who I loved for years, who broke my heart numerous times and who told me he loved me the night before Jeremiah and I were meant to get married. He shouldn't be here, it was just meant to be Jeremiah and me this year. Just me and the man I love; his trouble making brother shouldn't be here as well!

Every step I took towards him felt like a huge mistake. When I finally stopped in front of him he didn't say anything, just stood there in awkward silence looking me up and down without meeting my gaze. It was only when I stood in front of him that I got a good look at him myself. I noticed that, under his baseball cap, he was wearing a red bandana that covered his hair which - combined with the baggy jeans and loose fitting hoodie – made him look like a gangster/ rapper like Eminem or 50 Cent. Never in my life had I ever seen him look like that before. This style didn't really look good on him and it wasn't like the neat freak Conrad I grew up with. Then again nothing about Conrad seemed to be the same anymore.

When he finally spoke it was as if the hadn't spoken to anyone in days as his voice sounded groggy and it kept breaking. Conrad was always so composed, so this slight deviation in his persona was almost as surprising as the calmness in his voice, as he said "Hi Belly-Button." It was like he had forgotten everything that happened last year and that things were the same as usual. But it wasn't the same. The argument where Jeremiah had _disowned _him as his brother did happen. As of such the way he seemed to have forgotten it made anger flow through my veins.

"Hey Belly-Button!" I shouted, letting my temper get the better of me. "Is that really all you can say? After everything that happened last year, after you destroyed my wedding and nearly broke up me and Jeremiah, "Hey Belly-Button", is all you can say!"

"Actually correct grammar is _Jeremiah and I_." he replied in such as casual tone it felt like a slap in the face. Now he was just purposely trying to wind me up.

"I don't fucking care if it is correct grammar! The point is you shouldn't be here. You shouldn't be talking to me; you don't have the right to talk to me or call me belly-button after the shit you pulled."

"Look, I know I was wrong." Conrad replied after a moment of hesitation with a sheepish -and a little bit pained - look on his face, "It's just that I was kind of hoping we could forget about this and move on. Forgive and forget, you know but I guess not."

"You want me to forget? Are you kidding me? After all the pain you put me through you think I can just _forgive and forget_. Well no, I can't. It isn't that easy Conrad. I am not letting you hurt me anymore. I have had enough."

"I'm sorry," he said while bowing his head in what could only be shame, "I know it was a long shot that you would forgive me so easily but I hope eventual both you and Jere will find it in your hearts to forgive me. Until then, this summer I will be staying here and I promise I will try to put this right. I know I really fucked up this time and I will do anything to have you and Jere forgive me so we can move past this."

With that he turned on his heels and headed back into the house. Leaving me staring at him as he walked away, as he slightly tripped other a step on his way up, as if he had a limp but I didn't see any signs that he could have hurt his leg badly. My mouth hung open loosely, as I stared at him in awe. Had he really said that? Was he really going to try and make amends for what he did?

I was so wrapped up in my thoughts I didn't hear Jeremiah's car come into the drive way until he honked his horn at me and yelled "Hey Belly, are you ready for the summer of your life, girl" Excitedly, he then jumped out of his car and enveloped me in a giant hug. As if sensing my discomfort he pulled away holding me at arm's length with a caring look on this face, which made me want to melt into his arms. "What's wrong belly?" he asked quietly with a gentle tone, "What ever it is you can tell me."

Reluctantly, I took a deep breath to steady myself before blurting out "Conrad's here."

Shock clouded his face for a moment before what could only be described as pure rage consumed him. Things were about to get a lot worse and very dangerous.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

_Jeremiah's POV_

I can't believe it! My perfect summer of just me and Belly has just been wrecked by my lame ass of a brother showing up. Correction; he is no longer my brother; I disowned him as my brother. He doesn't deserve to be called my big brother; not after the shit he pulled last year. When I heard Belly say he was here it felt like someone had punched me in the chest. It couldn't be true; I didn't want to be. The last thing I wanted was my loathsome _ex-brother_ causing trouble.

I had to see for myself if he was really here, so I stomped into the house and there he was sitting on the sofa. Seeing him sitting on the sofa, so casually as if he had every right to,(which I guess he did as it was part his house as well – but that wasn't the point) it made me fill up with a uncontrollable rage. So when he said "Hey Jere, how life treating you?" so casually as if we were skill close, I just lost it. With that I stepped forward and threw a punch straight into his jaw line

_Belly's POV_

Everything seem to go in slow motion as Jeremiah stepped forward and punched Conrad in the jaw with enough force to send him toppling off the sofa and onto the floor. The way Jere's brow was furrowed into deep creases told me he was ready to go in for another blow. Just as he twisted himself to throw another punch at Conrad's head I quickly grabbed hold of his wrist. In response he jerked his hand out of my grasp but didn't go for Conrad again.

His breathing was erratic (bloating out his cheeks every time he breathed in) as he tried, and failed, to get his temper under control. He just glared at Conrad who was still sprawled out on the floor looking a mixture of fear and pain for a second before realising we were staring at him and went back to his usual composed self. "Look Jere I know you're mad; and you've every right to be. But was _that _really necessary?" Conrad asked with annoyance hinting in his voice.

As a response to that Jeremiah seemed to lose it again and shouted "You fucking bastard! After everything you have done you _deserve_ for me to hint you. You ruin _everything_! Not only did you ruin my wedding last year but now you're trying to cause trouble for me and Belly again. I _hate_ you, you bloody ass-hole!" To add extra emphasis to his words he kicked Conrad in the shin.

"Jere, I know I fucked up last year and I am very sorry." Conrad said looking down and with the same sheepish look he had when he was talking to me just moments ago. "I don't mean to cause trouble for you this year. In fact I came here to try put things right but obviously this isn't going well so far."

"Well, apology not accepted and you will _never_ be able to make up for the shit you caused."

"I know but I had to try, and I am going to keep trying until you forgive me. No matter what."

This last comment left Jeremiah speechless with his mouth hanging open in surprise. With one last solemn look Conrad got up from the floor and slowly headed to room. An uncomfortable silence enveloped the room until Conrad's bedroom door finally closed.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

_Belly POV_

At the sound of the click of Conrad's door shutting I turned to Jeremiah. He remained staring at the door which Conrad left through, with a slack jaw, for a few more seconds before turning to me. The anger that was there a few moments ago had now drained from his face and now was instead replaced with an expression of confusion. "What the hell just happened?" Jeremiah asked, clearly baffled by the encounter.

"I'm not really sure," I replied feeling quite taken back myself, "but it sounds like we will be having some company this summer after all."

"So much for our romantic summer." Jeremiah said with a slight pout forming on his lips while he wrapped his arms round my waist.

"You never know Jere; it might not be as bad as we think. I mean Conrad _did _say he was trying to put things right, so I doubt he will try anything if he is trying to make amends. There is probably nothing to worry about."

"Probably," Jeremiah answered with a touch of doubt creeping into his voice, "but that is only _if _Conrad keeps his word."

"We can only hope." I said gently, fondling the loose strands of hair that fell across his face. As I caressed his honey-coloured locks he looked at me in the eyes, with such warmth in his sparkling brown eyes, that I felt myself want to melt into his arms and stay there for as long as I could. Unconsciously, I had started to lean towards him until I was only a breath away from his lips. However, now wasn't the right time after everything that just went on, so summoning all the self-control I had I pulled back so we weren't so close. "So, how about we go unpack?" I asked smiling sweetly. "My suitcase is in my car so…"

"Yeh, so is mine. I'll go and get them."

After I finished putting all my clothes away the sun had almost gone from the sky. Stars were just to gleam in the night sky. The midnight blues of the night sky were softly cascading down onto the horizon; extinguishing the soft hues of pink, orange, red and yellow that streaked the sky as they trailed after the silken sun. As the sun faded from the sky it projected its last few rays of warm light, for the day, across the top of the ocean. Shimmering strokes painted the tops of the waves that bobbed along the surface of the sea in perfect harmony. Everything was tranquil as well as paradisiacal.

I loved it when the water was serene like this. It made it so easy to relax and to lose myself as I floated on top of it. Then an idea hit me and with that I quickly scavenged through my wardrobe looking for the first swimsuit I came to. Hurriedly, I put it on - not being able to wait to get in the water. After checking that neither Jeremiah nor Conrad was out there, I sprinted to the airing cupboard grabbed a towel and pulled it round me. Trying to make as little noise as possible to not disturb the two boys, I crept down stairs and once outside threw my towel on the nearest beck chair. I ran to the edge of the pool before jumping in and submerging myself underwater. Once I finally surfaced I took a couple of breaths and started to do laps. Swimming in the clear water - while it lapped against my body and flowed through my hair – made me feel more relaxed than I had felt in ages. It was heavenly.

I swam like that for what felt like minutes but would probably be at least an hour. Not that I cared; I would swim non-stop for days if I could. When I got out of the pool I wrapped the towel around myself and headed up to my bedroom. As soon as my head hit the pillow I felt so calm with the feeling of relaxation flowed through my body. Just before I dropped off to sleep my thoughts reminded of why I loved this place so much. Even with all the trouble that happened with the boys, this is place I grew up in, this was my second home, this was where I belonged.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

_Belly POV_

I woke up the next morning as sunlight shone on my curtains, giving the room a bright yellow tinge. I lay there, in my bed, for a few minutes just laying back, staring at the ceiling, feeling the softness of the bed and taking in the smell of the ocean which came in from my slightly open window. Everything I was always familiar with from childhood. I wanted to stay their reliving the good memories forever.

Unfortunately, this was not meant to be as soon all that happened yesterday came flooding back. Conrad's unexpected arrival, Jeremiah kicking off and what it meant for the rest of the summer. For that reason I was dreading going down stairs. I didn't want to run into Conrad as that would be extremely awkward. On the other hand, I couldn't let Jeremiah and Conrad stay in the same place as each other alone. Who knows what could happen?

With that last thought I pulled on a blue tank top and a pair of tattered jean shorts and headed down stairs. As I stepped out of my bedroom door a wave of nervousness crashed over me; Conrad would probably be down stairs already as he was always awake before me. Jeremiah would probably still be a sleep on the other hand as, given the chance, he could probably sleep for a year and the idea of facing Conrad alone scared me.

Gathering all the nerves I had I went down stairs only to be greeted the empty living room. Thinking he would probably be in the kitchen, I went in there as it would probably be better to get this encounter at of the way as quickly as possible. Again, he wasn't there, but I figured he had probably gone for an early morning run or gone into town or something. Realising I was hungry; I fixed myself a breakfast of the most sugary cereal that I could find in the cupboards.

Just as I was finishing off my cereal, I heard a familiar voice calling me. "Good morning beautiful" Jeremiah's deep voice exclaimed with an almost giddy tone to it. He walked up behind me and slinked his arms round me, holding me in a bear hug while planting a kiss on my neck.

"Morning Jere," I said dreamily while looking up at his face hanging above mine, "had a good sleep?"

"It was ok, but it wasn't as good without you beside me." Jeremiah said blushing slightly.

"Awe! That sweet Jere! So do you want to get some breakfast then head out to the beach?"

"Whatever you want, sweetheart."

"Ok, you sentimental git, how about you get your breakfast and I will be back in a minute and then we can go to the beach."

"Ok, I have already got my swimming trunks on so you just get your bikini on then we can go." Jeremiah said with a smirk. Grinning back I went up the stairs to my bedroom before quickly putting on a black bikini on and pulling my tank top and shorts over it. By the time I got back down Jeremiah had just finished his bowl of cereal and was ready to go.

With that we headed down to the beach together hand in hand and spent the rest of the morning talking, running around on the sand and splashing around in the ocean from time to time. It was just like how it was when we were little kids. I loved how easy it was just to act like we were still 5 years old.

Around midday Jeremiah and I got hungry and headed inside for some eggy bread and a few popsicles. Inside the kitchen we soon found the eggy bread plus the popsicles (which Conrad had kept in a generous supply) and grabbed a couple along with a beer for Jeremiah together with a can of coca cola for me. We then sat outside on the deck chairs by the pool and ate our little feast of eggy bread and popsicles. Afterwards we talked on the deck chairs for about an hour before going for a swim in the pool.

It was around half past 1 o'clock when we eventually saw Conrad. He came from inside the house onto the porch, while looking at us for a moment before stomping off to his car. He looked tired despite the fact that he only just came out at after midday. His shoulders were slumped and his head was down as if looking down at his shoes. Again, he was wearing a hoodie, baggy jeans and that stupid bandana under his baseball cap.

As he got into his car and drove off I turned to Jeremiah with a look to try to say "What the hell is wrong with him?" Jeremiah just shrugged and said"He's probably just woke up." He then went into his 'Conrad in the morning routine'; rolling his eyes back and groaning while doing a sort of walking shuffle that looked like a mixture of a zombie and Frankenstein. I couldn't help but giggle at this.

For the rest of the day we swam in the pool until evening when we went inside for dinner (cheese and tomato pizza ordered from Dominos). Afterwards we went into the living room and spent the night lying on the sofa watching Titanic - which I had managed to convince Jeremiah to watch after a heated discussion.

At around 9 o'clock Conrad came back from where ever he had gone before. When he came through past the living room he just looked at us, grunted something that I think was a "hey" then went up to his bed room, slamming doors along the way. He had looked really pissed off. Jeremiah just looked at each other – both not knowing what to do – then just turned back to the movie.

Once the movie had finished we both kissed good night and went to our bedrooms. That night I thought about the day I just had. About how it was just like it was when we were kids. How it was so easy just to act like everything was the same as then; as if nothing changed. Yet there was a voice in the back of my head saying that something was wrong. That I should be worried about what was going on with Conrad but at that moment I didn't care.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

_Belly POV_

The next morning I woke up to the sound of the waves crashing against the shore. Remembering the day I had yesterday I couldn't wait for today. I quickly got changed into a yellow tank top and red shorts with my black bikini underneath (just in case Jeremiah wanted to go swimming straight away again). It wasn't until I touched the door knob that I felt a touch of nervousness; I had avoided a confrontation with Conrad yesterday but today it might be inevitable. Same as yesterday, I into the hall way across from each other's bedroom, the kitchen, then the living room. Again he wasn't in any of them. He was probably sleeping in again; strange. Conrad always got up early; he very rarely slept in and never for more than one day. I started wondering if I should have been worried about it when Jeremiah came down the stairs.

"Well, hello gorgeous," Jeremiah said cheerfully, "you look as stunning as the sunrise this morning. Not that you aren't always beautiful."

"You were up when the sun came up?" I asked raising my right eyebrow in a questionable look, "I thought you never got up before _at least_ 10 o'clock; if then."

"I had something I had to do this morning."

"And it required you to get up at 6 am?"

"Yeh."

"What could be so important that you were willing to get up that early for?"

"Well," Jeremiah said with a brazen smile playing at the corners of his mouth, "I could tell you, but … that would ruin the surprise."

"A Surprise? What surprise?" I said with excitement swelling up inside my chest.

"You really don't get the concept of a surprise do you?" Jeremiah taunted. With all the excitement still making me feel giddy - the fact that Jeremiah wouldn't tell me and was mocking me with the knowledge he had over me – made me unconsciously start to pout. "No pouting Belly, remember." Jeremiah teased and when he saw that I was still pouting, he added on, "Don't worry sweet heart, all will be revealed soon," while poking the tip of my nose. "Now, let's go gets some breakfast. We can't have all the fun we have planned on an empty stomach."

After our breakfast (mine a bowl of golden crisps and his fruit loops), as I had expected, Jeremiah suggested we go swimming again. As I was ready this time, we just grabbed our towels and headed to the pool. We spent the rest of the day bouncing between splashing each other in the pool and lying on the sun beds, just talking while soaking in the sun's rays. We reminisced all the good times we had here when we were kids and made plans for the future (but nothing serious like the wedding: less permanent stuff like what colour walls we are going to have in our offices).

At around 5 o'clock I was beginning to get hungry and suggested that we order something from the sea food restaurant or something. I was just about to get up and get the phone when Jeremiah placed a hang on my elbow to stop me. He then turned me round so I was looking him in the face. "How about we wait a little while before we start ordering take out." Jeremiah asked, almost nervously.

"Umm," I said, not sure where he was going with this, "What did you have in mind?"

"I was thinking we could go for a walk first."

"Oh. Ok. Sure. That would be great." With that he took my hand in his and started leading me down to the beach. The feel of the soft sand on my feet was comfortable and the constant crash of the waves was soothing, making me relaxed. Walking side by side with Jeremiah, holding hand and looking at his brown eyes which were practically glowing in the evening light. It was magical.

For some unknown reason, just as it was about out of site, I looked back to the beach house and to my disbelief I saw Conrad. He had just come out of the house and was settling himself into a deck chair. I shouldn't have been surprised as he was staying there to and had every right to go outside. However, I hadn't seen him since Jeremiah and I first arrived at the beach house and I was beginning to think he was avoiding us (this was only encouraged by the fact that Conrad only came out _after _we left) which was odd as I thought he said he wanted us to go back to being normal; _like we were when we were kids_. But that didn't seem to be the case anymore as he chose to ignore us. Then again he could just be giving us a little bit of space so Jeremiah doesn't freak out again.

Just as I was turning back to Jeremiah I got one last look at Conrad and only then did I notice some things that were quite odd. First he was still wearing a strange bandana like what he had he had been wearing yesterday and the day before, only in deep blue this time. Not only that but was wearing baggy trousers again but just with a black t-shirt on this time instead of an ill-fitting hoodie. Without the hoodie, I could now see he had lost a lot of weight and was quite skinny now. It was weird to see him like this as he was always big and strong. I then forced myself to turn away and focus on Jeremiah as he held my hand and led me down the beach.

_Jeremiah POV_

Leading Belly down the waterline, I felt very nervous. Would everything go alright? Would she even like the surprise I had planned for her? I suddenly released the breath I had been holding: trying to get a grip and force myself to calm down. Everything would be OK. So I pasted on the best smile I could and looked at her. Wow, she was best looking girl I had ever seen; it was to believe this was Belly-button – the girl I grew up with and knew forever. She saw me looking at her and began to blush which somehow made her even cuter.

As we came across the quieter part of the beach which not many people knew about, I could see that what I had set up was still there. I let out a sigh of relief. A few feet away from the rock pools, I had set up a blanket with two cushions on it with different coloured shells scattered around it (I knew how much she loved them). I saw Belly give a confused look at me as I went over to the rock pools, and from the shaded little cave where I hid it, I pulled out a basket of food for us. Turning round to her to see the joy shining in her face as I said "Surprise!" With that I went over to the blanket and sat down before patting the spot next to me for Belly to join me. Happily, she took a seat next to me on one of the cushions as I started unpacking the contents of the basket: sandwiches, crisps, strawberries, apple slices, a fairly basic salad (just lettuce with a couple of cherry tomatoes in), biscuits, a couple of candy hearts (a little bit on the sappy side maybe but she thought it was sweet), a packet of twizzlers and a jug of coke. At the site of the twizzlers and the coke she grabbed a cup of coke and a twizzlers and drank the coke with the twizzlers as a straw like I knew she would (it was something we always did – some of our best memories). After a while she looked up at me and smiled.

"So, this is what you were busy with this morning?" She asked dreamily.

"Yeh," I answered, not really wanting to talk about it, but just wanting to enjoy the moment of us two being alone, "I had to get up early to get down here and set it all up before you woke up."

"Well this is amazing," she said looking me in the eye and I could see how much she meant every word she said "You really didn't have to do this."

"I know. But I wanted to. I wanted a little alone time with my girlfriend" With that we turned to look at the sun setting over the sea as she snuggled up into my chest. After a while I lifted her chin and turned her face towards me so she was looking at me and searched her face looking for permission. As she started biting her bottom lip, I took this as a go ahead and leaned in and kissed her; lightly at first, but as I kissed her again I added a little more force and she started kissing me back. We made out until after midnight. It might not have been sex but it was still one of the best feelings ever.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

_Belly POV_

Thursday morning, I woke up happily, still reliving the evening with Jeremiah. I couldn't believe, that just a few days ago, I was worried about Conrad being here and any problems there might be this summer. However, in just two short days, it has turned out to be one of the best summers I ever had.

As I got changed into a loose, white blouse and a pair of tight denim shorts with a white belt and flip flops, again with a bikini underneath. I decided to let my hair down today (instead of the high pony tail I had it in the last few days) and curled it so the unruly waves of hair cascaded down my back, which really made the outfit work. Before, I had been worried about letting my hair down as I knew Conrad liked it long as he liked messing with my hair, but since it seemed that he wouldn't be around much, (if the past two days were anything to go by) I figured I needn't worry about it.

When I went downstairs, I didn't even bother looking for Conrad as I knew he wouldn't be there. Even though I was now beginning to accept that Conrad was sleeping in late recently, but that still didn't make it any less weird. As far as I had known, he always got up early, whether it was to go for an early morning run or to do some studying for whatever obsession he would be going through (like for his encyclopaedia fascination or any other nerdy interest). As of such, starting to feel more relaxed than the past two days, I grabbed a bowl of cereal and a cup of orange juice from the kitchen, before flopping down on the couch in the living room.

About half an hour later, Jeremiah came down stairs wearing a red polo shirt and beige khaki shorts. "Hey Bells," Jeremiah said cheerfully "So listen, a friend of mine just text me and he said that he was only staying in Cousins for a few days this year, so he asked if I would go down to the arcade with him to hang out."

"Ok," I said trying to hide my disappointment, "have fun."

"Sorry about leaving you alone Bells, but if I don't go today I won't see him until next year. And besides, this will give you a chance to work on your tan." He said light-heartedly.

"Sure, I was thinking I looked a little pale, so yeh, I could do with getting more tanned." I replied with the most uplifting voice I could manage.

"OK. Cool. So I should get going now. See you tonight Belly." He muttered as he headed out the door.

"See you later." I whispered as the door closed behind him as he headed to the arcade.

After around five minutes of sitting staring at the wall, I began to realise that I had no idea of what to do with myself. Without my mum, Steven, Taylor or even Anika there, I was planning on spending the whole summer with Jeremiah; I hadn't thought about what I might do without him. In the end I decided to do what Jeremiah said and grabbed my towel, sun cream, sun tan oil and the latest issue of HELLO magazine before heading outside, onto one of the sun loungers beside the pool. Laying my towel on the sun lounger, then rubbing on a layer of sun cream, then a layer of sun tan oil and finally another layer of sun cream - just to be on the safe side – before settling myself into the sun lounger with my magazine. The sun radiated from the sky and a refreshing breeze made a comfortably warm atmosphere. As the waves rolled tenderly over the sand they whispered words of peace in hushed thuds as they met the sand. The pastoral scene created a lazy atmosphere and I soon found myself drifting off to sleep.

When I woke up the sun was high in the sky so it had to be around noon. As I sat up drowsily, I found that my shoulder was a bit sore and as I looked it was glowing red; I guess I missed a spot when I put on the sun cream.

"Oh look! Sleeping beauty is finally awake." Surprised I spun round to see Conrad sitting on the sun lounger next to me with a smug look on his face.

Realising what a moron I probably looked with my mouth hanging over I quickly retorted with, "Well look who is talking. What about you, huh? You've being napping more than my grandma these last through day."

Raising his hands in mock defence he responded with, "Touché." Relaxing a bit now he asked, "So where is Jere at today?" Without waiting for an answer he added, "Awe, did he leave you all alone to go hang out with his friends?" adding a small, jokey pout at the end.

"Shut up Conrad!" I snapped, frustrated by how casual he sounded,

"Ok!Ok. Calm down. Don't get your knickers in a twist" he said, still with a smug look on his face which made me even madder at him. I decided it was best to ignore him so I pushed my sunglasses higher up onto my face before picking up my magazine and starting to read it again; but Conrad didn't get the hint. "So, Belly what are you and Jere planning on doing this summer?"

"Well," I said getting very irritated now, "Jeremiah _and I _were planning on just hanging out on the beach _by ourselves_ for the rest of the summer."

"Really? Shame. I was thinking about maybe calling Steven and maybe we could all hang out together as friends, just like we used to when we were kids." I couldn't help but notice how he emphasized the "as friends" part, clearly sensing my discomfort. This did sound good but I had come here to get my romantic summer with Jeremiah; not a family get together.

"You can't do that." I said while quickly thinking of a believable excuse, "Steven's got an internship at a law firm near his college so he can't come."

"Too bad. I was hoping to have someone to hang out with while you and Jere spend all day snogging"

"Well if you're that bothered for company why don't you go back to California?" I hissed. It was only once I said it out loud that I realised how cruel that sounded. For a brief second a look of pure pain flashed across his face before going back to its usual, too-cool-to-care demeanour; but it was enough to make me feel terrible. I didn't mean to snap at him like that, it just that he has the ability to make me so mad and tangle up all my emotions in ways I could never think of.

Probably knowing I felt bad about that last comment, Conrad just shrugged it off and pretended like I nether said anything. "Oh well, I guess I'll just have to spend my time surfing, all by myself" he said with an over dramatic pouty face.

"Whatever." I replied while trying to hide my smirk behind my magazine.

"Ok. Forget about the rest of the summer. What about now? Since you're not doing anything. Do you want to go crab hunting like you did when you were little?"

"What? No! I'm not 5 years old Conrad; I am 19 now; I have out grown it."

"Oh, come on," he started but then paused as his gaze shifted from me to the ground. "Oh, look" he said slyly while picking something up off the ground, "here's one already." He then held up a huge crab, about as big as my hand. It was a light, dirty, yellow colour with long hairy looking legs and white claws that had little notches on them that looked like they belonged on a saw blade. What scared me the most was the way it was looking at me with its full black eyes; shining like lumps of haematite. It was the freakiest thing I had ever seen. "What's the matter Belly," Conrad joked, obviously seeing my discomfort, "are you scared of the little crab?"

"Conrad, that is not a _little crab_. That is huge."

"Don't be mean Belly." he pushed the crab towards my face making me cringe, "See, he likes you."

"Seriously Con, knock it off!" But he didn't. He continued to push the crab towards me until I moved off my sun lounger. Next thing I knew Conrad was chasing me down the beach with the massive crab laughing his head off while I screamed. The chase finally came to an end when I tripped over a bump in the sand sending me flying onto my front. Conrad then tripping over another bump which resulted in him landing a few feet to my right on this stomach and the crab he was holding flew out of his hand and landed about a meter away from us. For a minute we lay there dumb-founded, as we watched the crab get up and scuttle under a nearby rock, before bursting out laughing. Once we finally calmed down and got our breath back from the run (it was only a 100m sprint, but I guess neither of us are very fit right now. Weird though as Conrad has always been about health and fitness so he shouldn't be out of shape) Conrad looked at me and it was like things were the same as they had always been again.

"Well that was fun." Conrad said with a huge grin on his face.

"Yeh, it was, I guess."

"We should do this again sometime," he said with hope showing on his face before adding, "You know when you're not busy with Jere, of course."

"Yeh, I suppose that would be fun."

"Hey, Belly?"

"Yes?"

"Would you do a favour for me and talk to Jere for me? I know what I did was pretty crappy but I want him to forgive. He is my brother after all."

"I don't know. He is really mad."

"Can you at least try?"

"Ok."

"Thanks Bells." He said looking cheerful. "I guess I will see you around then."

"Umm. Sure?" I said a little hesitant as he got up and started to head back to the beach house. Suddenly he turned round and pushed a stray strand of hair away from my face.

"You know Belly you should wear your hair down much more often; it suits you." He then turned round and hobbled back inside the beach house.

As I looked at the beach house I felt a lot better about Conrad being here. It may still be a little awkward but it at least it isn't as bad as I first thought it would be. And who knows, maybe he's right and things will go back to the way things were when we were kids. But I doubt it.

**Authors note: Sorry I haven't updated for a while I haven't had much free time. I am also sorry to say that I might not be updating again for a while as I have just started Year 11 and things are already starting to get a bit hectic in preparing for exams. I hope you enjoy my story and will be patient with me as I will try to update as soon as I can. **


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